Snowy Memories
by Angevon
Summary: The Investigation Team finally goes on that ski trip. Souji tries to make memories with everyone. He ends up getting lost in a sudden blizzard with Yosuke... [SoujiXYosuke]


[AN: Spoilers through February (Golden). This is, obviously, based on the ski trip event. I tried to work it so that it's not exactly the same...]

* * *

"I-I'm not sure I can do this, S-Senpai!" Rise cried from the top of the bunny slope. She wore a pink winter jacket, and its matching pink ski glasses were resting on her head.

Souji, dressed in somber black with a white scarf, was waiting for her at the bottom of the slope. "Would you like me to show you again?" he called back.

Before she could answer, he was already sidestepping his way up the slope until he was at her side.

"Copy my stance," he said. He moved his legs until his skis were parallel. The top of the slope was relatively flat, so there was no fear of either of them starting to go down unprepared. "You'll push off... and if you need to slow down, you know what to do."

"Y-yeah," she said. "In like this." She tilted her skis inward until their tips were almost touching.

"Now, I want you to—" A sudden whoosh barely a few feet nearby interrupted him. It was a blur in white with black hair—Yukiko, followed shortly by Teddie.

Seeing the two go by so quickly dispirited Rise. "I'll never get this right," she said, voice quavering.

"It's all right," Souji assured her with what he hoped was a disarming smile. "I wouldn't be able to race Teddie, either. And if you don't want to do this, we can return to the lodge. I don't mind."

Rise shook her head. "No, Senpai! I'll learn how to ski and make you proud! Watch!" She settled her ski glasses over her eyes and hunched into a stance like she was going to push off. She trembled, and then... straightened again. "U-umm, Senpai... Could you go first?"

Souji smiled to himself. He didn't mind her hesitation; at least Rise had actually made it to the top of the slope. Kanji and Naoto were still at the bottom.

Besides, this ski trip might be one of the last fun things he was able to do with all of his friends—he was leaving next month, after all. He made it his goal to try and spend time with everyone.

He pushed down the bunny slope, skiing as slowly as he possibly could without stalling so that Rise could observe that it wasn't scary. Once he reached the bottom, he didn't climb back up, instead opting to check up on Kanji and Naoto who were around a dozen feet away.

* * *

"Thought Rise knew how to ski," Kanji commented some hours later.

Souji, Teddie, and Kanji were in the lodge's public bath. It was definitely what they needed after a long day out in the cold. The water was hot, and so was the steam rising from it, clearing their sinuses perhaps more than a hot soup could.

Souji was disappointed that Yosuke hadn't joined them, but his boyfriend was still out there challenging Chie at snowboarding. Well, Yosuke would probably be too embarrassed to go into the public bath with Souji anyway. This wasn't like the Amagi Inn's hot springs; towels weren't allowed in the water.

It was a good chance to hang out with Teddie, at any rate, since the bear had been racing Yukiko pretty much the entire day. And Kanji, too; although the younger boy was much more comfortable with himself than he used to be, Souji felt it was his duty to ensure that he didn't regress.

"She learned a few years ago," Souji explained, "apparently when she was much shorter. Now that she's grown up, it's frightening. Any luck with Naoto?"

"Tch," said Kanji. He didn't elaborate.

"Nao-chan fell on top of him and he almost scored!" said Teddie with an excited grin.

"Don't pull that scoring shit with me! Nothing like that happened at all!" Kanji growled, splashing water in his indignation.

It only made Teddie giggle further and start splashing everywhere until Souji calmed him down.

"Sensei! I know for a fact that you're scoring!" the bear declared.

"I cannot confirm or deny that," Souji said with a sly smile that was as much as proof to the bear, but strangely he didn't follow up on it.

Instead, Teddie lifted his feet up and played with his toes in the water for a moment before asking, "What's it like to score, anyway, Sensei?"

"No one's ever going to answer that, Teddie!" Kanji said, shaking his head.

"I'll tell you, Teddie..." Souji began, ignoring the choking sounds Kanji made. "Scoring is like..."

* * *

That evening, the entire Investigation Team gathered together in the lodge's lounge to enjoy hot drinks, eat snacks, and tell each other ghost stories. Spirits were high, even if there weren't any actual spirits to be had, unlike, perhaps, that night they'd played the King's Game...

Yosuke stood at the head of the table in front of the fireplace and led the discussion. Souji watched him quietly, and maybe his expression was a little moony. It felt like he hadn't seen Yosuke all day... He contented himself with the fact that they had still had another day here to enjoy. He'd have his chance. Besides, he still hadn't spent time with Yukiko or Chie, either, so he'd have to do that, too.

He blinked himself back to awareness and realized with some shame that he hadn't even heard the last ghost story...

"I'm not sure I wanna sleep in this old lodge tonight," Kanji said with a gulp.

"Nonsense," said Naoto. "This lodge has a high reputation. There is nothing to be afraid of."

"S-still," said Chie, "there's something about a house that eats people... Where did you come up with that story, Yukiko?"

"The Amagi Inn wasn't always the Amagi Inn," Yukiko began. "Centuries ago it was—"

"Oh no, don't tell another one!" Chie protested.

"Who's next, anyway?" Yosuke asked. "Chie, I think you're up."

"Uh, all right," the short-haired girl in green said. "One time there was this ancient medallion that was split into two parts, and..."

It soon became clear that instead of a ghost story, she was recounting the plot of one of her favorite kung fu movies.

While the group focused on teasing her about it, Souji took the opportunity to switch drinks with Yosuke. Mm, Yosuke was drinking hot cocoa and there were still a few marshmallows floating in it. They bobbed up against Souji's lips when he drank it.

"Just because a ghost is a minor character doesn't mean it's a ghost story!" Yosuke sounded disgusted. He sighed. "All right, partner. Can you salvage this?"

Souji swirled the cup and watched the marshmallows whirl around at the surface of the cocoa while he gathered his thoughts. "There was a boy who went to sleep and woke up in a very blue room. Sitting across the table from him was a man with a nose so long the boy could almost reach out and touch it..."

Souji further described the mysterious Velvet Room, and though Yosuke complained that there wasn't any plot to his story, his other friends seemed interested.

"And the girl knew nothing of why she was there. She didn't even know her own name, just the name the long-nosed man gave her." Souji paused thoughtfully. "And she still has amnesia to this very day."

He stopped talking and all of his friends were looking at him expectantly. Then Yosuke broke the silence. "That's it? That's the story?"

"I don't know how it ends," Souji admitted.

As a group, everyone groaned. "You can't just end like that!" "That poor girl..." "What was with that nose?"

"S-sorry," Souji said with a helpless shrug.

"I think that's enough for tonight," Yosuke said, "unless Naoto has something to say."

"I have nothing to recount," the young detective replied. "Ghost stories are clearly in the realm of the illogical."

"Thought so. I figured you'd tell a story about how someone thought something was a ghost and it turned out to be that the cat they'd thought went missing was hiding in the attic."

"Oh, I should have used that!" Chie exclaimed. "That sounds like a good one."

"Really? I just made it up right now..." Yosuke said. He picked up the cup in front of him and took a drink and spilled it over his hands when it didn't contain what he expected. "How did my cocoa turn into tea!?"

Souji began to chuckle.

"The greatest ghost story of them all," Rise teased. "Senpai!"

"Partner, that wasn't funny," Yosuke said. "If it was still hot, I could've burned myself!" He wiped his hand with a napkin from the table.

Souji apologized, and Yosuke was mollified. Yosuke did, however, take his cocoa back from Souji's unresisting hands and finished it off himself.

"Yosuke's right, we should call it a night," Chie said. "I've had enough stories—"

"Teddie's turn!" The bear suddenly jumped up from his seat. "Once there was a beautiful lady—"

"I think I'll cut you off there, Ted," said Yosuke. "No one wants to hear you make up a story about how you scored. Especially when you don't know what it means."

"I do too know what it's like to score!" Teddie proclaimed, his chest puffing out. "Sensei told me!"

"Partner, you didn't!" Yosuke covered his face in his hands.

"Oh?" said Rise, leaning forward across the table. "This I have to hear."

"There's no way," Chie whispered, her hand over her mouth.

Souji smiled enigmatically. "You can tell them, Teddie. They already know."

"Scoring is like eating a Topsicle!"

Yosuke groaned. "Really...?"

"That can be taken in so many ways, Senpai," Rise said, raising her thin eyebrows.

"There's more," said Souji. "Go on, Teddie."

Teddie bounced up and down with excitement. "And then finding out it's your favorite flavor!"

"What the hell..." said Yosuke. "That doesn't even make sense, partner!"

Rise and Yukiko were laughing together, and Chie looked like she couldn't decide between joining them or being mortified. Naoto's face was carefully blank, and Kanji was frowning.

"Topsicles are good," Kanji admitted. "But I dunno if I'd go that far..."

"It was clearly a joke at Teddie's expense," Naoto said. "However, it is as good an explanation as any until Teddie matures."

"_If_ he matures," Yosuke muttered. "That's a big 'if.'"

"My favorite flavor is lime!" Teddie declared as if that mattered at all.

"Note to self: never give Ted a lime Topsicle." Yosuke shook his head. "Sometimes I wonder about you, partner... Anyway, it's getting late. If we wanna hit the slopes early tomorrow, we ought to get some shut eye."

Yosuke made to stand, but Souji grabbed his arm and pulled him onto the couch. "Stay back," Souji requested in a whisper so that only he could hear, "until the others leave."

The girls retired together as a group, and Kanji escorted Teddie away to the room while unsuccessfully trying to explain that Topsicles were not part of the process at all.

Alone now, Souji kissed Yosuke on the cheek. "Come on, partner!" Yosuke protested. "You know Teddie'll be back any minute for more snacks!"

"I've been wanting to kiss you all night," Souji whispered, his voice husky. "All day, even! That's why I switched our drinks..."

"I'm sorry to tell you, partner, but I don't think we're going to get any alone time on this trip. Kanji and Teddie are staying in the same room. And you know if we take too long to get there, they'll be wondering what we're doing!"

Souji almost told him to let them wonder, but he'd already done enough to ruin Teddie's innocence today. They really didn't need to be caught by the bear in any sort of intimate moment.

"I'm not happy about it either," Yosuke confessed, a tinge of pink to his cheeks. When Souji continued to look disappointed, Yosuke gave in and kissed him on the mouth. "That'll have to do for now, okay?"

Souji sighed and released him. "All right. Let's get some sleep."

Their room was similar in style to the one they'd had at the Amagi Inn after the Culture Festival. There were four floor futons lined up next to each other, and there was a TV in the corner and a small tea table which held their now-cold drinks. They'd already settled their sleeping arrangements earlier. To maintain their reputation, Souji and Yosuke were on opposite ends of the room. Teddie was next to Souji, and Kanji was at the bear's other side, between him and Yosuke.

Despite not being next to Yosuke, Souji was content with the arrangement. It proved that Yosuke had grown up a lot, since he was completely okay with sleeping next to Kanji now. It made Souji very proud...

And fortunately, unlike the Amagi Inn trip, Yosuke didn't make any incredibly stupid plans to try and raid the girls' room. Nope, Yosuke didn't have any girls on his mind anymore, Souji thought to himself with a smile as he drifted off to a dreamless sleep. Just his partner, hopefully...

* * *

They were outside the lodge the next morning. A riot nearly broke out when Naoto innocently commented that the point of the ski trip was to spend time with Souji since he was leaving Inaba next month. Spending time with everyone had been Souji's plan, but it relied on his friends being unaware of it!

"You're right...!" Kanji said, eyes bulging. "I want to make memories with Senpai, too!"

As the others murmured their agreement and began to crowd around him, Souji gripped his ski poles more tightly and quietly began to panic. Were they going to make him choose between them all?

Where was his day planner when he needed it!?

"Why don't we let Senpai decide for himself?" Rise said. "Be honest!"

He wasn't able to stop his eyes from widening, like a deer facing an eighteen-wheeler. Or surrounded by a wolf pack...

"Wait a sec, that's not fair," Yosuke spoke up. "You should all go together, you know?"

Naoto agreed, and Rise followed suit by adding, "Well, he probably would have chosen you anyway, Yosuke-senpai."

"No, actually," Yosuke protested. "I'm snowboarding. Skiing is for chumps! Right, Chie?"

"Uh, yeah!" Chie answered. She turned her snowboard around. "What, you wanna rematch, Yosuke?"

"You're on!"

Souji heaved a small sigh of relief at his best friend's timely intervention. In the end, he spent most of the day with Rise, Kanji, and Naoto again, much like the previous day. Both of the girls finally braved the bunny slope, and the two boys enjoyed seeing them tackle it again and again, though they never became confident enough to move up to an intermediate slope. Still, it felt like progress had been made...

* * *

Souji looked up at the sky from the lower valley. It was getting late. This would have to be his last run. He'd just gone down the mountain with Yukiko and Teddie. Before that he'd gone with Chie. He'd spent some time with everyone... except his boyfriend. He tried to find the boy with his silly camouflage pants and the red jacket that spelled 'Jiraiya' incorrectly and soon spotted him by the lodge, arguing with Chie over who was faster on the slopes.

"I won fair and square!" Chie shouted. "You said best three out of five! And I won three!"

"That last run doesn't count!" Yosuke claimed, crossing his arms.

"It does too!"

"Ted ran into me! How is that fair? You bribed him with Topsicles, didn't you? I see how it is!"

"You make me so angry sometimes!" Chie growled. "But if we don't count that run, then we're tied! I'm not in the mood for another rematch!"

"Why don't I stand in for you?" Souji suggested, stepping perpendicular to them to join the conversation. "I'll go down the mountain with Yosuke, and if I win, Chie wins, and Yosuke, if you win, then you win."

"Partner..." Yosuke said. "I don't think that's fair. You're on skis. They're faster."

"Oh..." said Souji, looking sad. "But I don't know how to snowboard."

"You know, it doesn't really matter that much," Chie said, eyeing the two boys thoughtfully. "All I want right now is some hot cocoa!" She went inside the lodge and they felt a small burst of heat from inside when she opened the door.

"Can we go down the slopes one last time together?" Souji asked.

"Yeah. I'm sorry I didn't do anything with you until now," Yosuke said, scratching his head through the hood of his jacket. "I knew everyone wanted to hang out with you. As long as you had fun, that's all that matters."

Souji assured him that he did. He was pretty sure he'd managed once again to please everyone. "And now it's your turn."

"Saved the best for last, huh?" Yosuke chuckled.

While they rode the ski lift together, Yosuke told him about how he totally won fair and square over Chie in their little snowboarding competition. Souji didn't comment, just smiled in that non-confrontational, 'of course you're right' way of his.

And then they were at the top of the slope. From here, Souji could see all the way across the valley below. The lodge was just a small dot at the bottom of the mountain. He'd already taken in the view before, but this would be his last time up here, so it was worth doing again.

Especially since Yosuke was with him.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Souji commented. Snow blanketed the mountain like a field of white. Leafless trees with spidery, icicle-laden branches poked out on either side of the main route down, which was marked out by bright orange flags.

"Definitely won't see this in the city," Yosuke agreed. "So... Did you make any memories?"

Souji nodded. "I think so."

"Remember _this,_" Yosuke said. "I'm gonna beat you down the mountain!" In an instant, he kicked off his snowboard and went careening down the slope.

"But skis are faster—" Souji stopped and sighed because he was protesting to air. He put on his ski goggles and then set out to prove it.

It didn't take very long for him to overtake Yosuke; the boy hadn't had much of a lead, anyway, and you couldn't fight physics. Still, Yosuke sometimes cut corners instead of following the established path when it curved, so at times they seemed somewhat even. Souji would keep it to himself later, but he slowed down a bit just for his friend to keep up.

Souji pulled up short in the valley, the angle suddenly not steep enough to continue skiing. He frowned and looked around, because the lodge was nowhere in sight. They'd definitely gone down main route which would lead them there at the end. He was certain he hadn't missed any of the path flags...

Yosuke stopped a few feet away from him and kicked up his board. "Well, that's that. Chie wins." He sounded happy, anyway—probably still pumped up on adrenaline from the snowboarding. "It's getting dark out, though. Man, will you look at those clouds? Hey, which way's the lodge?"

"I... don't... know..." Souji admitted slowly.

"Uh, partner? I was following you."

"Yeah, you were following me," Souji replied with a smirk. He was allowed to crow a little bit, right?

Yosuke shot him an annoyed look before worry overcame him. "Seriously, where's the lodge?"

Souji didn't know. He looked at his right hand, and then his left hand. The right hand had less snow, so he went in that direction after taking off his skis and shouldering them.

There was a sort of a path between a growth of trees, and they made some progress along it when the storm hit them. The sudden blizzard blew flurries of snow right into their faces. The wind was chilly and blasted through their jackets as if they weren't even wearing them. Soon it was hard to see through the sheer torrent of snow coming down.

Somehow, the storm felt familiar to Souji, though he couldn't answer why even to save his life. He'd never been in a blizzard before, as far as he could remember...

"S-Souji...? Are you there?"

He could hardly hear Yosuke over the howl of the wind. He glanced back and saw his friend trudging forward. Souji probably only appeared as an unidentifiable shape to him, maybe even a tree. He probably should have worn a brighter color instead of black. He grabbed Yosuke's gloved hand and pulled the boy along with him.

"A-are we th-there yet?" Yosuke asked. He tried to laugh but it sounded miserable more than anything.

"We'll find it," Souji promised him.

"Y-you'll like it if I t-turn into a T-topsicle, right?"

"You're being silly," Souji told him sternly.

They continued in silence for a moment and then Yosuke said, "I can't f-feel my legs."

Souji couldn't feel the cold anymore, and that was probably a bad sign. He didn't know what to do, and he hated that. He tugged Yosuke's arm and told him they couldn't stop moving. Yosuke said he might be about to collapse, and Souji knew he didn't have the strength to carry him if he did.

Fortunately, he didn't have to try. He spied a cabin not too far away. Upon seeing it, Yosuke seemed to regain some energy, and they shuffled towards it together.

No one answered their knock, and when Yosuke tried the door, they found it wasn't locked. They entered without hesitation and closed the door firmly shut behind them. They dropped their skis and snowboard right there at the threshold without any ceremony.

"This place is old," Yosuke said after their eyes had adjusted to the darkness. "It doesn't have electricity."

It seemed to be an abandoned cabin. The air smelled musty and the view out of the window was blocked by dust on the inside and frost on the outside. The snow shovels leaning against the wall were gathering cobwebs. A bunch of cardboard boxes were stacked in one corner and an old lantern lacking fuel hung near them.

It was definitely warmer here than outside due to the absence of wind, but it was still very cold. Souji wasn't sure how safe it would be to fall asleep here, though his exhaustion from their long trek through the snow begged him to try.

"Hey, there's a hearth!" Yosuke discovered. "Maybe we can light a fire!"

They scrounged around the cabin and found some wood and matches and were able to get a very small fire going in the cabin's firepit. There wasn't much wood and it took half the matches just to get it going...

Souji took off his scarf and jacket and laid them as close to the fire as he could to get them to dry out. He had Yosuke do the same, and then they gathered at the fire and held their hands out to it to warm them.

"Fire is a lot hotter in my memory," Yosuke muttered. "This isn't going to last very long, is it?"

Souji, staring at the dancing flames as they crackled and burned, didn't answer.

"This place feels like it's been abandoned... Do you think the others will get a search party out for us? What if we're stuck here until the storm ends? How long do blizzards last, anyway...?" Yosuke trailed off, maybe because Souji had nothing to say.

The fire began to dim along with their spirits.

"We're going to die here, aren't we?" Yosuke whispered.

Souji jerked his head back to reality and blinked at his friend. He realized by the quavering quality in his voice and the way his body was trembling that Yosuke was about to cry.

"We're going to die," Yosuke repeated, "and it's my fault because I wanted to go on a stupid ski trip with you. And now we're gonna d-die together. Dammit... I don't want to die!"

"Yosuke!"

Yosuke bowed his head and sniffled. The tears running down his face reflected the last bit of firelight.

Souji scooted behind his friend and wrapped his arms around him to try to soothe him. "We're not going to die."

Yosuke's body relaxed a little in his embrace. "We defeated that giant eyeball, but our biggest challenge yet is h-hypothermia... Dammit..." He sniffled again and rubbed his raw nose. "Imagine the headlines when they find us. Two Boys Found Frozen In Each Other's Arms."

"It won't come to that," Souji assured him. "Someone will notice we're missing and send help."

"...What if they think we're messing around, and that's why we're missing? They won't send help, then."

"Why? Because they're afraid of catching us?" Souji pressed his hands into Yosuke's belly and was mildly annoyed at how their many layers of clothing limited his ability to be affectionate.

"Well, I don't want to die a vir—what am I saying?"

"I don't think we should take off our clothes," Souji murmured, but he kept his chin on Yosuke's shoulder so that his breath would heat the boy's neck.

They watched the fire together for a few minutes, Souji's close presence keeping Yosuke calm.

"Hey, Souji...?" Yosuke's head leaned back to try and look at him.

"Yeah?"

"I wanted to tell you..." He paused and turned his head away. "Thanks. For giving me a chance."

Souji didn't answer with words, just made a positive sound against Yosuke's neck.

"Even if it has to end like this." Yosuke sighed.

"We're not going to die," Souji told him again. "When the fire goes out, we'll move to the corner of the room, huddle together, and use our jackets as a blanket, all right?"

"Y-yeah..." Yosuke's voice was shaky again, so Souji kissed his neck softly before pulling away. "S-Souji?" he whimpered.

"Stay here," Souji told him as he stood up. "Stay by the fire." They hadn't finished exploring the tiny cabin, and he wanted to do it before the weak light from the fire was gone. "I'm going to clear a corner, okay?"

Souji moved a chair and wondered if he could break it apart for firewood, but it turned out to be made of metal. As he pushed a heavy cardboard box out of the way, he considered that he could break the box down and then burn it. Unfortunately, it was full of mechanical equipment. He wouldn't have enough time to take everything out before the fire went out—

The fire went out.

"Souji...!"

"Bring the jackets and come over here," Souji directed softly.

Yosuke obediently brought them over once his eyes adjusted to the lack of light. Souji sat down in the corner and patted the spot next to him, and Yosuke joined him. Souji took the scarf from him and tied it around both of their necks, and Yosuke draped the jackets over them. They were still a little warm from the fire.

Souji shifted his body so that his arm was around Yosuke's back. The boy followed his lead and leaned into him. It reminded Souji of the time they'd sat together just like this on the floodplains...

"Yosuke," Souji said quietly. "You didn't have to thank me. I know what I want."

"Right now I just want to be warm," Yosuke muttered. He resettled the jacket and drew his legs in closer under it.

"I want you to know that I have no regrets," Souji went on.

"Regrets?" Yosuke protested. "I thought you said we weren't going to die..."

"Hear me out," Souji said. "We saved Yukiko, and Kanji, and Rise, and Naoto. We caught the killer. We saved Nanako-chan. These are things no one else could do."

"Yeah... We brought peace to our sleepy little town..."

"And you were by my side the whole time," he whispered right into Yosuke's ear. "Every step of the way."

Yosuke turned his head away. "S-so was Chie!"

"Yes, so was Chie," Souji agreed. He took his hand out from under the warm jacket just to turn Yosuke's head back to face him. "But I never wanted to kiss Chie. So... when the two of us became more than friends... I was really, really happy." His eyes were half-closed as he watched Yosuke, and he squeezed the boy's side. "I'm still really, really happy..."

Yosuke dropped his gaze. He found Souji's gloved hand under the jacket and held it. "Y-you know, you make me feel like the luckiest guy in the world. I'm not going to lie. It's been... it's been weird, having a boyfriend. I guess it'd be the same if I had a girlfriend, but... I can't understand it, sometimes. When you're not with me, I wonder what you're doing, I wonder if you're thinking about me, if you're wishing I was there..." He paused. "Ugh, this sounds so lame..."

"It's not lame..." Souji whispered. "Keep going..."

"I don't know what else to say. Except... that I want to be with you more, and... that I'm glad I'm not alone right now."

"Me too." Souji squeezed his hand. "We'll make every day count, okay?"

Yosuke nodded, and when Souji moved in for a kiss, he didn't resist at all. He did, however, complain that it was too cold for this when Souji pulled away. "Isn't my nose like ice? Yours sure is..."

"Want me to kiss that, too?" Souji teased.

"No, just my lips again," he replied. The boy eagerly obliged, and they spent some time comforting each other in that manner.

Then a light flashed on, interrupting the moment. Souji frowned at the shadows that were now cast on the wall behind them.

"A rescue team!?" Yosuke exclaimed.

As their eyes adjusted, they realized the light came from a television that was standing in another corner of the cabin. "I thought there was no electricity," Souji murmured.

"I wonder why it turned on. Let's check it out." Yosuke carefully draped his jacket over the front of his body so that he could carry it with him and then stood up.

Souji joined him and together they stared at the rather old-fashioned television. It had a rabbit-ears style antenna and the channel changer was a knob on the front.

"You don't suppose..." Yosuke began and trailed off.

"The TV World has never been very cold," Souji remarked.

"We don't know where it would take us. Could be a Shadow's den..."

"And we don't have our weapons, but..."

"It's worth the risk," Yosuke finished. "Agreed?" Souji nodded, and Yosuke reached out to touch the screen. As he made contact, suddenly a feminine hand shot out of it, grabbed his arm, and pulled him the rest of the way in. He didn't even have a chance to scream.

Souji blinked at where his vanished friend had been a second ago and followed in after without hesitation.

* * *

They were in a forest. The ground was blanketed with a light dusting of snow, but a weak sun was shining and the temperature wasn't too cold. It was warmer than the cabin had been.

"Wha... Where are we, partner? Whoa, what the hell is that!?"

Souji glanced at Yosuke, who was face-to-face with a large, featureless haniwa. In fact, there were several more of the terracotta statues around them, almost as many as the trees.

Yosuke rapped his fingers against the statue, and the sound echoed since it was hollow. "Man, for a moment I thought it was a Shadow!"

"I did not wish to interrupt, but..." said a voice behind them. Yosuke jumped and grabbed Souji's arm.

Souji himself stared and opened his mouth at the elegant woman walking towards them. "M-Margaret?"

"We have business to attend to," the Velvet Room attendant finished, a small smile that could actually be a smirk on her face. She wore the same clothes as always—blue coat and black stockings—and the cold didn't seem to be affecting her at all.

"She's beautiful... Uh, who is she?" Yosuke whispered. "You know her?"

Souji nodded. "She looks dangerous, but she's an ally."

The mature woman raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Indeed. My name is Margaret, and I am a helper on his journey. I am here to guide you... Do you remember?" She addressed the question at Souji.

"You found Marie?" Souji stepped forward in his enthusiasm, breaking away from Yosuke's grip.

Margaret turned to the entrance to the shrine near them and proceeded to explain that Marie had recovered her memories of who she was... and that she now desired to be forgotten.

"Are we talking about the same Marie... Marie-chan?" Yosuke asked. "I knew she wasn't a student, but... she's from this world? That's hard to take in."

"We'll save her," Souji announced.

"Oh, there's no doubt about that, partner!" Yosuke winked at him. "But, uh... just the two of us...?"

Margaret smiled more with her eyes than anything. "In fact, the others have just arrived. One moment."

She stepped before the old TV standing in the middle of the snow. She pushed her hand through its screen, and when she drew back, the rest of the Investigation Team suddenly tumbled through it in a clash of limbs and mixture of cries, protests, and curses.

"Wh-where are we—you two!" Chie cried. She was the first to get to her feet. "We were so worried! Whoa, I think she's the one who grabbed me...!"

Margaret turned to Souji. "I'll leave you to explain to the rest..."

"Y-yeah," said Souji. "Do you all remember that story I told you last night...? It seems the girl just recovered her memories and she needs our help."

"That story was real? Senpai..." Rise murmured.

"Marie needs us," Souji continued, his face a mask of determination. "Let's make a plan..."

That Marie didn't want to be found was worrisome, but truth be told, Souji looked forward to leading the rescue mission. It would give him one more opportunity to make memories with his friends.


End file.
